Walz
Walz was a Japanese camera maker or distributor. History First use of the name The first camera with the name Walz, a 3×4cm folder, appeared in 1936. It was ostensibly made by "Walz Camera Works" (ワルツカメラ・ウオークス) or "Walz Works" (ワルツウオークス) but these were dummy names (see Camera Works), and this maker is identified as Okada Kōgaku by various sources. , p.344 (item 346); , item 1262; , p.745. The earliest examples of the Okada Waltax, made in 1940, also have Walz markings. Both the 3×4cm Walz and the Waltax were distributed by Nihon Shōkai. The same company sold various Walz accessories before 1945, such as a rangefinder, filters and hoods, and again others around 1949. It was certainly the owner of the Walz brand name, and was perhaps the predecessor of Walz Shōkai. Trading company The company K.K. Walz Shōkai ( ワルツ商会) was already existing in November 1952. Advertisement dated November 1952, reproduced in , p.214. It was based in Tokyo. Its address between 1952 and 1961 was Tōkyō-to Chūō-ku Nihonbashi Muromachi 1–16 (東京都中央区日本橋室町1–16). Source: advertisements reproduced in , pp.214–5 and 329–32. Shōkai literally means "Company" in Japanese; but it is often used for trading companies, and this looks like a distributor's name. It does not mean however that it did not have its own manufacturing branch, perhaps called "Walz Camera Co." as indicated by some lens markings. Walz sold cameras under its own name. It was also an Olympus authorized dealer, at least in 1954. Advertisements dated 1954 reproduced in , p.215. See also this advertisement for the Walcon and Wagoflex reproduced in the Shashin-Bako website. Walz also sold many accessories, including filters, self-timers, exposure meters, rangefinders, multifocal finders (including a copy of the Leitz Imarect), flash units, movie editors, etc. The company name became simply K.K. Walz ( ワルツ) at some date between October 1955 and August 1956. Advertisements dated October 1955 and August 1956 reproduced in , pp.215 and 329, showing the transition. In 1960 and 1961 it had offices in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka and Washington D.C. Advertisements dated 1960 and 1961 reproduced in , pp.330 and 332. It went bankrupt in April 1961. Lewis, p.104. Miscellaneous Walz's president Ōta Toshio (太田俊夫) became a writer after the company closed its doors. This page by Shimamura Hideki. He wrote several novels about the business world of the time, including Shachō Saigo no Hi (社長最後の日, The last days of a CEO) or Keikaku Tōsan (計画倒産, Fake Bankruptcy). A company called Waltz K.K. (ワルツ ) exists today (2007) and sells coffee. It was founded in December 1952 in the town of Toyohashi. It is certainly not the same company that sold photographic products, that already existed in November 1952 and was based in Tokyo. See the chronology of the current Waltz website. Camera list 120 film * Walcon Semi (4.5×6 folder) * Walcon 6 (6×6 folder) * Wagoflex (6×6 TLR) * Walzflex (6×6 TLR), various models 127 film * Walz Automat 44 (4×4 TLR) * Walz Automat M44 (4×4 TLR) The Walz (3×4) was sold by Nihon Shōkai before the Walz company. 35mm film * Walz 35 * Walz 35-S * Walz 35-SV * Walz Electric * Walz Envoy 35 * Walz Envoy M-35 * Walz Wide Other products * Walz exposure meters: ** Walz Minor (c.1955) Advertisement in no.80, June 1955, p.55. ** Walz Etalon (sold ¥3,900 in 1955) Column in no.80, June 1955, p.103. ** Walz Super II (sold ¥7,000 in 1955) * Walz rangefinder NKS Pat 8645 * Walz multifocal finder * Walz flash guns * Walz self-timer * Walz filters and hoods * Walz tripods and ball-heads Notes References / further reading * * * ** "Denki roshutsukei" (電気露出計, Electric exposure meters). Pp.102–3. ** Advertisement by Walz Shōkai on p.55. Links In English: * The Walz Envoy 35 page, in English and in Japanese at Mediajoy Classic Cameras, follow the "Next" links at bottom of the page to get an illustrated sequence of operations. In Japanese: * Page on classic cameras at Shimamura Hideki's website, including details on Walz and its president Ōta Toshio * The Walz 35, the Walz Envoy 35 and the Walz Electric 2.8, all with sample pictures and some with restore tips, at K.Fukushi's Rangefinder website * A-Z 35mm rangefinder cameras at Asacame, with the Walz Wide on this page * The Walz 35 page in the Camera database of the Center of the History of Japanese Industrial Technology * Advertisement for the Walcon and Wagoflex, published in 1954, reproduced in a page of Japanese postwar advertisements at the Shashin-Bako website * This Walzflex page at La Chambre Claire suggests that Nihon Shōkai was the owner of the Walz brand name before the war, and became Walz Shōkai after the war. In French: *Cameras at www.collection-appareils.fr Category: Japanese camera makers Category: Japanese distributors